Tag: Buying

Every Trinket File guide tagged buying, from construction checks and ring sizing to what jewellery survives daily wear.

Plain bands worn on two hands resting on white linen

Everyday Jewellery: What Survives Daily Wear

The jewellery that survives daily wear is not the most expensive jewellery. It is the jewellery with enough metal in the right places. Two pieces can carry the same hallmark and the same price, and on

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A hand lifting a gold bracelet from a tray of price-tagged jewellery

Buying Second-Hand Jewellery: What to Inspect and What to Ask

Second-hand is where a modest budget meets well-made jewellery, and it is also where a buyer has the least protection. Estate sales, pawn shops, auction houses, vintage dealers and online marketplaces

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A stud earring with its butterfly back in close up

Earrings: Metals, Backs and Everyday Comfort

An earring is chosen in a mirror, in seconds, and then worn for ten hours at a time. The judgement made in the mirror concerns how the piece looks from the front. The parts that decide whether it is c

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Sheets and granules of gold, copper, brass and silver on a white surface

Choosing a Metal for Everyday Wear

The metal you choose for a piece you wear daily matters more than the design detail you spent an hour deciding on. Metals differ in how they scratch, how they tarnish, how they feel, how heavy they ar

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Hands forming silver links over a bench with pliers and a blowtorch

How to Check Jewellery Construction Before You Buy

Most of the attention in a jewellery purchase goes to what a piece looks like from arm's length. That is the part the maker has designed for. The part that decides whether the piece still looks right

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